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Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Me & My Stash

My stash is pretty eclectic. I got into cloth diapering slowly. First I got a couple of fitteds and prefolds to use around the house, then I got some pockets and AIO's to use on short trips, then I took the overnight plunge and became a full time cloth diaperer. This gradual accumulation of diapers, paired with tight finances that wouldn't let me buy more than a couple of diapers at a time has grown into a large collection of cloth diapers of various kinds.

I now present to you My Stash, divided into categories and ranked from least to most favorite with pros and cons:

AIO'sBlue Penguin- Pros: inexpensive, easy to care for, PUL is hidden, sturdy snaps.- Cons: The fit just wasn't right for my daughter because these diapers are really wide in the crotch, cotton prints covering PUL can lead to some wicking, bulky.WAHM diapers- I love supporting moms working at their own businesses, and I have found some super cute WAHM-made AIO's but if you're ordering online it can be hard to tell what you're getting and they generally don't offer warranties.Monkey Doodlez- Pros: nice trim fit, lots of cute colours and prints, very stain resistant.- Cons: over-priced, not absorbent enough to last more than one hour on my daughter, the aplix is very thick and stiff and the laundry tabs never stay fastened, sizes don't last long.Mommy's Touch- Pros: one-size, great colours and prints, available in snaps or aplix, super soft, fast drying, comes with extra snap in doubler, lasts overnight.- Cons: small size settings seem awkward and doing up 6 snaps can take a little too long for a squirmy baby. These are my daughter's favorite diapers.

POCKET DIAPERSHappy Heinys- Pros: one-size, lots of cute colours and prints available, comes with 2 inserts.- Cons: aplix is thick and stiff, the liner does not cover the PUL at the back of the pocket so it can rub and leave red marks, lining is not top-stiched around the legs so it rolls out and looks sloppy, inner lining pills up really quickly, the inserts are not as absorbent as other brands, laundry tabs do not stay shut. To be fair though, I have never tried the snap version of this diaper and I hear it is much better.DryBees- Pretty much the same as Happy Heiny's, but the lining is nicer.Haute Pockets- Pros: one size, very trim fit that is narrower between the legs than other brands, super breathable PUL prevents redness, snap fasteners are simple and long lasting and aplix fasteners are strong but not too wide.- Cons: I don't have any cons for this diaper, but I have never used the Haute Pocket inserts so I don't know how they compare.BumGenius-Pros: one-size, perfect fit with aplix and stretchy tabs, very absorbent, trim fitting, aplix tabs are nice and narrow and soft and never come undone from laundry tabs in the wash.- Cons: no cute prints (although they have a few more colours now which is great), leg elastics may not last through subsequent children.

FITTED DIAPERSSnug-to-Fit- Pros: inexpensive, one-size.- Con: very bulky at any size.Babykins- Pros- inexpensive, mesh lining contains messes well.- Cons: aplix is very stiff, laundry tabs are awkward to uncover.Home Made Diapers- I've managed to sew a few diapers that fit my daughter nicely, but none of them are as nice as store bought.Mother-ease Dry- Pros: affordable, one-size, very durable, stain resistant, good snap system.- Cons: bulky, dull to look at, don't fit well under snug covers.Bamboozles- Pros: very absorbent, sized, but with a snap down option as well for a good fit, natural fiber that is good for baby's skin.- Cons: softness disappears after a few washes and leaves more of a terry-cloth texture, takes a long time to dry, bulky, prone to stains.Mother-ease Bamboo- Pros: affordable, one size, very absorbent, thin, soft, natural fiber that is beneficial for baby's skin, good snap system, will last through multiple babies.- Cons: bulky between the legs, doesn't fit well under snug covers.Sandy's Bamboo- Pros: affordable, super softness that lasts, fantastic fit, even more absorbent than Mother-ease one sizes, natural fiber that's good for baby's skin and has anti-bacterial properties, very durable, fits under any cover.- Cons: sized, slow drying.

COVERSKushies- Cons: plasticy, stiff, show wear badly.Mother-ease Air-Flow- Pros: I've never had a leak.- Cons: not cute, I prefer snug-fitting wraps.Staccinator Wool Cover- Pros: fits a wide weight range, breathable.- Cons: bulky, not waterproof enough for overnight.Sugar Peas Wool Cover- Pros: nice trim fit, thin yet dense.- Cons: low rise fails to cover many kinds of fitted diapers.Fleece Pants- They don't even have to be marketed as longies, any thick polar fleece pants will make a nice, inexpensive, easy to care for, breathable diaper cover.Bummis Super Whisper Wraps- Pros: trim fitting, durable, stain resistant, never leak, PUL is covered on the inside so no sticky plastic ever touches skin.- Cons: aplix shows wear after a while.Home Made Soakers, Longies and Recycled Wool Sweater covers- I have learned to make my own wool covers and I have found it very rewarding. I can make a wide variety of covers to suit any circumstances and keep costs down too.Aristocrats Wool Soaker- Pros: hands-down the absolute best diaper cover for overnight.- Cons: expensive, too bulky for daytime use.

MISCELLANEOUS (in no particular order) Kissaluvs Contour Diapers- Pros: marginally easier to put on than a prefold, fits under any cover.- Cons: the softness wears off almost immediately, takes forever to dry, even longer than most of my AIO's and fitteds, doesn't contain messes.Prefolds- Pros: a tri-folded prefold in a snug wrap makes a very nice economical diaper, super easy to care for, durable, multi-functional (you can use them as burp-cloths, change mats, doublers, towels etc.) inexpensive, will last through multiple babies.- Cons: can be bulky, tricky to fold onto a squirmy baby.Microfibre cloths- Tri-fold one or two and stuff them in a pocket or lay them inside a wrap with a liner on top for a super inexpensive option instead of prefolds, doublers or inserts.Hemp Doublers- Pros: absorbent, natural fiber.- Cons: they can get stiff, a little expensive.Bamboo Doublers- Pros:absorbent, natural fiber.- Cons: can also be a bit expensive.Bio-Soft flushable liners- Pros: great for away from home or for sitters, very soft.- Cons: if you forget to remove one and throw it in the wash it kind of disintegrates and gets stuck in any exposed velcro.Kushies disposable liners- Pros: convenient way to clean up.- Cons: very stiff and rough feeling.Snappies- Pros: much easier to use than pins.- Cons: you must use a cover, more neurotic mothers will worry about the teeth poking all the way through the diaper and scratching the baby.Callendula Cream- all natural, great for diaper rash as well as insect bites, eczema etc. washes off easily and won't harm cloth diapers.Blue Penguin wetbag- Pros: perfect size for the diaper bag or a night away, inexpensive.- Cons: drawstring closure can let smells out.PlanetWise wetbag- Pros: very pretty, zippered closure.- Cons: the one I have only has room for one or two diapers.I love to try new things, and every time I go to the Cloth Diaper Whisperer Blog I find a dozen new things I'd like to buy, but for now I'm done!

Such a cool stash! Thanks for sharing your pros and cons too. I'd love to try some of the things on it. Right now I"m limited to a dozen Fuzzi Bunz pockets, prefolds, and a few fitteds with covers. But baby #3 is due in November (YEP, we're officially pregnant!) so hopefully I"ll get to try some new things for him/her. What are your favorite diapers for newborns?

i love my motherease because of their plain white colors, i do not find them 'dull' at all. soooo, can anyone recommend a good wetbag to buy? i want a zippered one to hold in smells and large enough for the day out.

Thanks for sharing your stash!! I too will be gradually buying more diapers....it's nice to know that I'm not the only one! I love being able to read the pros and cons of each type, which I will file away as I make new purchases.

Thanks for sharing all those pros and cons. It makes me think now that I have started changing my stash over to BG OS 3.0s maybe I shouldn't try the other pockets. I was thinking about it but so many other people keep listing BG as their faves. :)

Wow oh wow, holy cow!!! That is quite the stash. Your daughter and kitty are super cute. I love hearing about objective views on different brands. My view of BG's is not very objective since thats all I have tried. LOL But I still LOOOOOOVE them!

I've found a trick with the Happy Heiny's aplix tabs for laundry (because yes, in my experience the laundry tabs don't work at all)... Just connect the tabs to one another behind the diaper... simply pull one tab behind the diaper and pull the other tab around and twist it so you can connect the aplix and this works AMAZINGLY well!

The Happy Heiny's is a bit more floppy, but it is the more generously cut OS diaper... I find it works best with a prefold versus the contoured shaped inserts the diaper comes with.

I really like how listed your stash. I love details and you did a great job explaining likes/dislikes of the dipes. There were some brands that I have never heard of so it was a "stash post" to read! Thanks!

Yay I'm posted! Thanks for the kind words!Nikki- Sorry, I don't know from newborns. I started when Eden was about 2 months and 12 pounds, well into one-size territory.AScott- I would dearly love to try Softbums...and every other brand available if possible.Serena- Brilliant idea with the aplix laundry tabs. I will definitely try that. It might also work for those who have problems with BG's, although I can honestly say I have NEVER had the tabs on those open in the wash.updates: 1.I got the Haute Pocket inserts and they are great.2.My newest addition, a Blueberry minky pocket diaper, may just have taken the No.1 favorite spot for fit, absorbency and overall cuteness, but the cost would still deter me from having a whole stash of them.

I have been researching for hours about cloth diapering and haven't gotten as much information as I got here! Thank you so much, I'm just starting to cloth diaper on my 3rd baby and wish I had thought to research it for my first 2! Thank you so much for your time spent telling us about the different brands.

Thanks for the encouragement, I've only got some really cheap prefolds and diaper covers right now and I love it. I'm looking for really inexpensive gently used chinese prefolds and trim covers for my 7 week old little boy. Pray I'll find some!